Canon Holmes Memorial Trust
Registered Charity No.801964
Full Description: The Canon Holmes Memorial Trust is dedicated to providing financial assistance to parents who on account of a change in family finances find themselves unable to continue to meet their financial commitments to their children's education within the independent sector. By 'change in family finances' is meant the financial implications of, for example: the debilitating illness or death of either or both parents, parental marital breakdown, or redundancy of the key salary earner. The Trust particularly supports children in the preparatory sector, i.e. from 7 - 13, but in exceptional circumstances is also prepared to consider ongoing support through to the age of 18.
History of the Canon Holmes Memorial Trust: Prior to the 1960s, 40 parents guaranteed a loan to convert a house and grounds into a school called Hutton Park. The school opened in 1961 and after a few years was welcoming a maximum of 160 boys annually. In the early 1980s however, numbers declined, costs increased significantly and the school closed in 1986. With the consent of the Charity Commission, the funds from the sale of the property were used to establish the Trust.
Qualifying Criteria: Initially, all Intending applicants must have been able to fund their child/children's independent education satisfactorily, that is to say funding will not be available for children at the outset of their education in the independent sector. Parents must live within the bounds of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brentwood or the Anglican Diocese of Chelmsford, the boundaries of which are generally co-terminus with that of the County of Essex together with the 5 East London Boroughs of Barking and Dagenham, Havering, Newham, Redbridge and Waltham Forest. It is not a requisite that applicants should be members of the Roman Catholic Church or the Church of England. Support may be given to pupils attending independent schools anywhere across the country.
Assistance: The amount of assistance which the Trust can give has to be applied for on an annual basis. No guarantee can be given that assistance will be for more than one year. Each application is considered on its own merits and in strictest confidence. Under the terms of the Trust Deed it is not possible to consider payment of fees in arrears. Payment of fees is made direct to schools, not to applicants. All applications must come from parents or guardians and not schools.
